Please
turn with me to Luke 16:1-13 - which is our text this
morning. This is a parable that Jesus shared with His
disciples and others that were with Him. The focus of
the parable is financial investment - where do we invest
God’s money?

Oracle
Corporation - down in Redwood City - is the world’s
second largest software company. Mr. Larry Ellison -
co-founder of Oracle - owns 23% of Oracle. Before the
recent slide in the Stock Market that meant that Mr.
Ellison was worth around $60 billion. With the slide in
the market, Mr. Ellison is down to a measly $20 billion.

About a
month ago there was picture on the front page of the San
Francisco Chronicle with the caption “The Villa That
Oracle Built.” Did any of you see this? Apparently Larry
Ellison is building a $100 million residence down in
Woodside.

The
residence - situated on 23 acres - includes 10 hand
crafted Japanese style buildings - including a 7,841
square foot main residence with underground parking - a
boat house - teahouse - and two ponds holding 3.9
million gallons of water - two waterfalls - 500 imported
trees - 3,750 tons of hand-chiseled Chinese granite -
5,000 tons of boulders from the Yuba River - and the
list goes on. To do all this they’ve moved enough dirt
to raise an entire football field 45 feet into the air.

Impressive?
Bill Gates of Microsoft fame - has a larger house up in
Washington. Gate’s house is 48,000 plus square feet.

In Luke
16 - Jesus is talking about wealth - how to use it - how
to invest it. And most importantly - as believers - the
attitudes that should govern our hearts while we invest.

Luke
16:1: Now He - Jesus - was also saying to
the disciples, “There was a rich man who had a
manager, and this manager was reported to him as
squandering his possessions. And he called him and
said to him, ‘What is this I hear about you? Give an
accounting of your management, for you can no longer
be manager.’ The manager said to himself, ‘What shall
I do, since my master is taking the management away
from me? I am not strong enough to dig; I am ashamed
to beg. I know what I shall do, so that when I am
removed from the management people will welcome me
into their homes.’ And he summoned each one of his
master’s debtors, and he began saying to the first,
‘How much do you owe my master?’ And he said, ‘A
hundred measures of oil.’ And he said to him, ‘Take
your bill, and sit down quickly and write fifty.’ Then
he said to another, ‘And how much do you owe?’ And he
said, ‘A hundred measures of wheat.’ He said to him,
‘Take your bill, and write eighty.’ And his master
praised the unrighteous manager because he had acted
shrewdly; for the sons of this age are more shrewd in
relation to their own kind than the sons of light.

Putting
it mildly - this manager is a crook - a scoundrel. He’s
corrupt. He’s stealing from his boss - spending tons of
money on himself - misappropriating funds and doctoring
the books to cover-up his theft. This is a guy who’s
climbed up the ladder of success by riding on the backs
of others. He doesn’t do manual labor. He’s very
concerned about his image - his position - in society.

When he’s
caught red handed, he’s already working on a scheme to
save his neck. He calls in the people who owe his boss
money and cuts deals with them - again doctoring the
books. And, he’s rewarded for it. Because, his boss is
just as corrupt as he is.

In verse
8, Jesus puts it plainly, “the sons of this age are
more shrewd in relation to their own kind than the
sons of light.”

This is
the way business is done. Its the way the world
operates. The world rewards corruption and selfishness.
And everybody operating within the world system expects
it - uses it - working it for their own advantage.

Robert
Maxwell, served in the British army during World War II
and as a distinguished officer earned the Military
Cross. In the 1960’s he served as a member of the
British Parliament. In the 1980’s, Robert Maxwell
founded Maxwell Communications Corporation and by 1990
Maxwell had built one of the world's largest media
empires, which included American publishing companies as
well as television and film production concerns. This
man was wealthy - “Lifestyles of the Rich and Famous”
wealthy.

In
November 1991, while cruising off the Canary Islands in
his yacht - Maxwell drowned mysteriously. Apparently he
fell overboard and in the morning they found his nude
body floating in the water. Later, investigators found
that Maxwell had misappropriated hundreds of millions of
dollars from his company and his employee’s pension
funds.

While “the
sons of this age” are shrewd in using the world’s
system the tragedy is that they’re ignorant when it
comes to thinking about God and what matters for life
and eternity. Jesus is teaching His disciples - and us -
how to be wise in the ways of God and wealth. Using
wealth for what really counts in life and for eternity.

The key
to understanding what Jesus is teaching in this parable
is here in verse 9. Jesus says, “And I say to you,
make friends for yourselves by means of the wealth of
unrighteousness, so that when it fails, they will
receive you into the eternal dwellings.”

Now, it
almost sounds like Jesus is telling us to be as corrupt
as the world so that we’ll gain eternal life. Which
can’t be right. And, it isn’t. Actually, Jesus is making
a contrast with the world’s way of doing things. To
understand that contrast we need to understand two
things.

Remember
that the “love of money” is a root of evil. (1 Timothy 6:10) Money itself is
amoral. Its not evil. There is nothing wrong or immoral
in having wealth. Wealth may be a stewardship God
entrusts us with. It can either be used selfishly and
sinfully, or it can be used for the glory of God. Jesus
is saying that its what we do with money that matters.

Second,
we need to understand what Jesus means by, “when it
fails.” The King James version translates this
more accurately, “when you fail” - meaning, when
you die. In other words - here’s Jesus point - “Make
wise use of the world’s wealth, so that when you die,
you will be received into heaven.”

To do
this, there are two attitudes we need to have if we’re
to make wise use of the world’s wealth - to invest
wisely - God’s way.

Look at
verse 10: He who is faithful in a very little thing
is faithful also in much; and he who is unrighteous in
a very little thing is unrighteous also in much.

The first
attitude is FAITHFULNESS.

John
Wesley was a teacher at Oxford University back in the
1700’s. When he began his career he was paid 30 pounds
per year - in those days a lot of money. His living
expenses were 28 pounds - so he gave 2 pounds away.

The next
year his income doubled - but he still managed to live
on 28 pounds - so he gave away 32 pounds. The third year
he earned 90 pounds - lived on 28 - and gave away 62.
The fourth year he earned 120 pounds - lived on 28 - and
gave away 92. One year his income was a little over
1,400 pounds - he lived on 30 and gave away nearly all
of the 1,400 pounds.

Wesley
felt that with increasing income, what should rise is
not the Christian’s standard of living but the standard
of giving.

That’s in
contrast to the world’s understanding of wealth. More
income means more investment for the future - a larger
house - an upgrade in transportation - more toys. Which
it not why God gives us wealth.

God tests
us. He’s teaching us. He gives us a little so that we
learn how to invest it in His ministry. As we learn to
use “the little” wisely He gives us more. Faithfulness
is when we continue to keep the priority of our
financial management on God and not us.

The
second attitude is HONESTY. Jesus said, “he who is
unrighteous in a very little thing is unrighteous also
in much.”

W.A.
Criswell tells of an ambitious young man who told his
pastor he’d promised God a tithe - a tenth - of his
income. They prayed for God to bless his career. At that
time he was making $40 per week and tithing $4. In a few
years his income increased and he was tithing $500 per
week.

The man
called the pastor to see if he could be released from
his tithing promise, it was too costly now. The pastor
replied, “I don’t see how you can be released from
your promise, but we can ask God to reduce your income
to $40 per week, then you’d have no problem tithing
$4.”

On
average, it cost $39 per person per Sunday to keep this
church going. If we were to sell tickets for Sunday
morning worship - and I’m not suggesting that we do that
- but, if we were - the price for the seat you’re
sitting in would cost $39. God knows that. He knows what
we need to do His ministry. And He’s giving us the
resources necessary to do His ministry here.

There are
tremendous opportunities of ministry that God lays
before us to invest in. Ask John - Chairman of our
Missions Committee - and I’m sure he’ll have some
suggestions of ministries that need support. Or, looking
around at what God is doing here at CACC - what an
opportunity to invest in God’s work.

But,
sometimes we try to bargain with God when it comes to
giving. If we’re dishonest - unrighteous - with God -
holding back what He’s entrusted to us - we’re going to
miss those opportunities.

With
faithfulness and honesty - ultimately God isn’t so much
concerned with how much money we give as He’s interested
in the attitude of our heart.

King
David - towards the end of his life - gathered together
all the political, military, and religious leaders of
Israel - the most wealthy and influential people in the
Kingdom. Before the gathered assembly, David donates his
personal fortune for the purpose of building the Temple.
All his life, David has been faithfully managing
material things to be used for God’s spiritual purposes.
Now in one last act of stewardship - he donates a vast
fortune for God’s glory. Solomon may have built the
Temple. But, it was David who financed it.

As David
gives - the entire assembly is motivated to give - gold,
silver, brass, iron, coins, precious stones - an
incredible fortune is given. 1 Chronicles 29:9 says that
the people rejoiced because they had offered so
willingly - they made their offering to the Lord with a
whole heart. And David rejoiced - seeing the people
freely giving - faithfully using material wealth for
God’s spiritual purposes.

Then
David says this, “But who am I and who are my people
that we should be able to offer as generously as this?
For all things come from You, and from Your hand we
have given You.” (1
Chronicles 29:14)

Faithfulness
to God’s purposes for wealth - honesty in our giving -
comes as we understand - in our hearts - that God gives
us wealth for His purposes.

Jesus
concludes His parable with 3 warnings. First He says,
verse 11: Therefore if you have not been faithful in
the use of unrighteous wealth, who will entrust the
true riches to you?

True
riches come from God. Of these are the Fruits of the
Spirit - “love, joy, peace, patience, kindness,
goodness, faithfulness, gentleness, self-control.” (Galatians 5:22,23)
In Ephesians 1, Paul writes of the riches of our the
eternal inheritance that is ours as God’s children. (Ephesians 1:18)
All of these are effected by our management of God’s
resources.

Second
warning - verse 12: And if you have not been
faithful in the use of that which is another’s -
meaning God’s resources - who will give you that
which is your own?

Do you
remember the parable Jesus told of the rich nobleman who
went off to a distant country? He called his servants
together and gave each one of them a certain amount to
invest - hoping for a substantial profit when he
returned. Two of the servants invested the money and
made some profit. When the nobleman returned he lavishly
rewarded these first two servants. The third servant
buried the money and made nothing.

Do you
remember what the master did to the third servant? He
called him worthless. Then he took the money away from
him and gave it to the servant who had made the most
money. (Luke
19:11-27)
We cut ourselves off from God’s reward when we fail at
rightly managing His resources.

Third
warning - verse 13: No servant can serve two masters
for either he will hate the one and love the other, or
else he will be devoted to one and despise the other.
You cannot serve God and wealth.

Surprised
to see an empty seat at sold out Pacific Bell Park, a
die hard Giants fan remarked about it to a woman sitting
nearby.

“It
was my husband’s,” the woman explained. “But,
he died.”

“I’m
very sorry,” said the man. “Yet, I’m really
surprised that another relative, or friend, didn’t
jump at the chance to take the seat reserved for him.”

“Beats
me,” she said. “They all insisted on going to
the funeral.”

When it
comes to wealth, what is really important for
our lives - and are we focused on that when we invest
our wealth?

In
Pompeii, Italy there’s a museum of things they’ve
excavated from the city. And, there’s a body of a woman
that was found mummified by the volcanic ashes of Mount
Vesuvius. The position she was found in tells a really
tragic story. Her feet were pointing toward the city
gate. In other words, she was facing away from safety.
Her outstretched arms and fingers were straining for
something that lay just beyond her reach. The treasure -
that she lost her life for - was a bag of pearls.

When we
invest wisely - faithfully - honestly - seeking to do
God’s will with His money - God is glorified - His will
is done and we are blessed. Not just now - but forever.
And, there’s nothing in this world that offers a greater
return on our investment.